BabyBarista and the Art of War
Bloomsbury
2009
Having followed the BabyBarista Times Online blog avidly
now for three years, I approached the book with concern
that this would be a 'cut and paste' job reproducing what has gone before.
But, to my delight, the author has produced a hugely
expanded version of the famous BabyBarista blog, with
characters fleshed out, plotlines expanded and Machiavellian
intrigues bursting out of every page. It is an incredibly
funny satire of life as a pupil barrister, seen through the
eyes of the eponymous 'BabyBarista' (or BabyB as he
endearingly refers to himself throughout).
BabyB is a charming yet ruthless cross between Sir Humphrey
Appleby and Frances Urquart, but without the grey hair and
instead with a eye for the ladies (in particular, the sultry
character known as TheVamp and his good friend Claire - the
only character with a real name throughout the whole book).
Plotting his way around the intrigues of a fictional set of
Chambers, BabyB manipulates the hopes and fears of his rivals
in an effort to win the golden chalice at the end of pupillage - a tenancy.
Tim Kevan's view of the Bar is far more worldly than that
of John Mortimer or Caro Fraser. This is no whimsical
portrayal of a collection of eccentric individuals. Rather,
the author describes a world of individuals motivated by
ambition and money living side-by-side with the more traditional,
honourable barrister most frequently seen in fiction.
This book deserves to be on every bookseller's Top 10 list - it
is screamingly funny, bitterly satirical and hugely informative
about the problems of life during pupillage, told by a man with
great love for, and knowledge of, his profession.
Available from Amazon.
1st August 2009